Thursday, March 22, 2007

I've always thought that Scott Base is a much prettierand more organized place than McMurdo. Even all of thebuildings (many connected buildings) are the same color of green. I never knew this green had a name until Glenn,the Base Manager, told me it was Chelsea Cucumber. Thebelow excerpt is from the Scott Base 1957-2007 website.http://www.scottbase50years.co.nz/

"Why is Scott Base painted green?

The original base was a mixture of orange, red and yellow. Around 1967 the Director of the Antarctic Division DSIR (Bob Thomson) decided that there should be a uniform colour and that green would be a reminder of New Zealand pasture and bush. The colour is British Standard BS6701, RBT Green. However, it has also been suggested that Bob remembered a trip to Ireland where he liked the white cottages surrounded by green and he reversed this for Scott Base. The colour has subsequently been referred to as RBT Green, after Bob (Robert Baden) Thomsom. The colour is actually Chelsea Cucumber (Resene 6-071)."